Radamel Falcao marked his return to play after an 8-month ACL rehab with a goal against Arsenal in AS Monaco’s final preseason tuneup, and his coach checked the “ready” box.
After the match, Monaco manager Leonardo Jardim said “Falcao is indispensable to Monaco,” and when asked if that meant he was untransferable, he replied “Yes, the answer is the same.”
“I’m very satisfied with the performance of Falcao and that he scored,” Jardim told media in London following their controversial 1-0 win over the Gunners. “I am happy with the performance of the team. We played two great teams. The players have shown in these two games they are in a very good physical condition.”
There have been plenty of rumors linking Falcao with a move to Real Madrid, but it’s a bit hard to see where he’d fit in between Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale, James Rodriguez, Karim Benzema, and Angel Di Maria.
Some have speculated that Madrid is shopping Di Maria to find the money for a purchase of Falcao, but it would seem Monaco is not going to comply.
However, it’s still hard for some (like me) to believe that selling the La Liga assists leader from last season to fund the purchase of another striker coming off ACL surgery is a good idea, especially with all the change Madrid has already seen to its roster.
Monaco’s Ligue 1 season begins as early as August 10, with a fixture against Lorient.